Interesting Article - Tesla Model S

[Stuno1]

Interesting article and it shows there must be some sort of 'deal' with oil companies and car manufacturers to not produce electric cars in earnest. Looks like the electric car tide cant be held back too much longer and the main issue is infrastructure within countries to support the electric car market.

300 mile range and 4 hours to get there doesn’t seem bad considering these cars needed overnight charge for fewer miles not too long ago. Very impressive imo and well don Tesla for making a viable, attractive electric car....again!

Article link:

http://www.pistonheads.com/roadtests/doc.asp?c=47&i=30052

Stu

[jamesm182]

Link to article?

Electric cars are getting there IMO and not to mention hybrids have come a long way. I still think that hydrogen fuel cells could be the future when the technology takes off. Fill up at a traditional style fuel station, drive X amount of miles and fill up again all while emitting only steam. Plus surely the fuel companies can gradually switch to selling hydrogen so everyone can keep their jobs!

[Stuno1]

Link would have helped! Now added.

Maybe the case regarding hydrogen fuel cell cars as the cost for appropriate electric car infrastructure would be monumental to make them truly viable at the present moment in time.

Stu

[jamesm182]

Interesting article. Definitely a nicer car than the Nissan Leaf! :D

[Stuno1]

Interesting article. Definitely a nicer car than the Nissan Leaf! :D

Also nicer than BMW I series cars.

[Captain Fizz]

:) http://theoatmeal.com/comics/tesla_model_s

[noby76]

am still not sold on the electric car technoology until there are charge points everywhere just like petrol stations. dont get me wrong am all for any technology which would help save our planet but i personally think Hybrids are a better technology than fully electric. e.g take the CT200h vs the BMW i3 for example. they both cost around 25 - 30K. the i3 makes around 170bhp and the CT200h around 140bhp so the bmw is quicker of the two to 60 but ct200h beats it for top speed.

whilst the CT200 has a combined mpg of around 78mpg the BMW can manage a whopping 470mpg. al this favours the i3 against the CT200 but whilst one can fill up the ct200h with petrol anywhere and everywhere, one will always need to plan thier jorneys with the i3 in that they need to make sure they have enough charge for any given journey this means they will need to have a charge piont installed at home so althought you get 470mpg you wouldnt want to see your british gas bill at the end of the month. one always has to make sure thier destination has a charge point incase they might not have enough charge left to get them back home this could also mean having to drive the extra miles from your destination to locate a charge point and spending around 3 hours of your life waiting for the batteries to charge when the CT driver can just duck into any petrol station and fill up. even if the CT driver runs out of fuel in the middle of no where, they can still walk some miles to any fuel station, buy some petrol top up and they are sorted the i3 driver cannot do this in the same scenario once thay are out of charge thats it.

if the CT200h develops any issues with the hybrid Battery system thay can still drive the car using the engine again the i3 driver cannot do this in the same scenario if thier Battery system malfunctions. Yes the i3 owners can opt for the range extender model which gives them a 2 cylinder 650cc engine which serves as a recharging device for the batteries whilst on the go but this can only handle 2 gallons of petrol which serves as an extra cost as they now have to have to pay around £3000 to have the range extender model, pay for fuel, and also pay british gas at home to charge thier cars over night and also pay british gas for maintenance of the home charge kit once warranty has run out and also pay BMW for servicing.

so all in all i personally think Hybrid makes sense, will be less of a hassle to own and run and cheaper in the long run than an electric car equivalent.

at almost £70,000 for the Tesla i would would rather spend £50K on a new GS450h F-Sport and invest that £20,000 some where.

[dave1]

Not sure where British Gas enter the equation John? The range of the i3 is only 100 miles anyway.

Also struggling to see how you reckon 470mpg?????? it runs on electricity which is not supplied in gallons. If the range extender engine is fitted it will return around 40mpg according to Autocar tests.

The Tesla is not realistically comparable with the i3 or indeed the ct200h.

[dave1]

Interesting article and it shows there must be some sort of 'deal' with oil companies and car manufacturers to not produce electric cars in earnest. Looks like the electric car tide cant be held back too much longer and the main issue is infrastructure within countries to support the electric car market.

300 mile range and 4 hours to get there doesn’t seem bad considering these cars needed overnight charge for fewer miles not too long ago. Very impressive imo and well don Tesla for making a viable, attractive electric car....again!

Article link:

http://www.pistonheads.com/roadtests/doc.asp?c=47&i=30052

Stu

I looked at the article Stu but couldn't see anything to really suggest "a deal between oil companies and car manufacturers to not produce electric cars in earnest."

Agree about the Tesla though....good looking car and use-able. I would imagine that if someone could afford to buy one then they would have the facility to charge it at home.

[noby76]

Not sure where British Gas enter the equation John? The range of the i3 is only 100 miles anyway.

Also struggling to see how you reckon 470mpg?????? it runs on electricity which is not supplied in gallons. If the range extender engine is fitted it will return around 40mpg according to Autocar tests.

The Tesla is not realistically comparable with the i3 or indeed the ct200h.

the Tesla is not comaprable to the BMW i3 or CT200h i was comapring a full blown hybrid to an electric and used those two as examples. if you comapre the Tesla to a GS540h F-Sport hybrid the results will be the same. in that it will be cheaper to buy, maintian and run in the long which was my point. the i3 is offically stated to return around 470mpg combined yes its an electric but with good maths skills you can work out its distance in mpg based on distance travelled if you want to..see below.

http://cars.uk.msn.com/reviews/bmw-i3-rex-range-extender-long-term-test-review-1

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/bmw/i3/first-drives/bmw-i3-range-extender-first-drive-review

British Gas came into the equation because one might need a charge point installed at thier home if they own an electic car and the UK govt has a subsidised funding scheme with british gas which gives electric car owners best deals on free home installation charge points which BMW or Tesla might not be included at the moment but there is a govt scheme in place with british gas for electric car owners.

Always take the time of the day to do a little bit of research before you grab that keyboard Dave.

[dave1]

the Tesla is not comaprable to the BMW i3 or CT200h i was comapring a full blown hybrid to an electric and used those two as examples. if you comapre the Tesla to a GS540h F-Sport hybrid the results will be the same. in that it will be cheaper to buy, maintian and run in the long which was my point. the i3 is offically stated to return around 470mpg combined yes its an electric but with good maths skills you can work out its distance in mpg based on distance travelled if you want to..see below.

http://cars.uk.msn.com/reviews/bmw-i3-rex-range-extender-long-term-test-review-1

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/bmw/i3/first-drives/bmw-i3-range-extender-first-drive-review

British Gas came into the equation because one might need a charge point installed at thier home if they own an electic car and the UK govt has a subsidised funding scheme with british gas which gives electric car owners best deals on free home installation charge points which BMW or Tesla might not be included at the moment but there is a govt scheme in place with british gas for electric car owners.

Always take the time of the day to do a little bit of research before you grab that keyboard Dave.

The figure of 470mpg is ridiculous as it only has a 2 gallon tank and is said to do around 40mpg when running on that. Have you researched where the 470mpg figure came from?

These electric cars can be plugged into a normal mains socket John so British gas do not need to be involved. If a 3Kw/16amp socket is required there are many companies other than British Gas who are authorised to install them under the Government funding initiative. Out of interest, most new electric cars, including BMW, will be compatible with funded charging units.

[noby76]

this is a combined figure of the overall consumption i.e. Battery and engine based on driving style and driving conditions so its not cast in stone. depending on how one drives it could be less than this figure common sense should tell you this Dave.

British Gas do not need to be involved but they are part of the energy companies authorised to carry out the free home installation of course you can get any cowboy to do the job but at least you garunateed warranty with british gas incase of any power/voltage issues at home so i used them in my example again common sense should tell you this.

plug your electric car into a normal mains socket and it will work fine but you will be surprised how long it takes to charge withoiut a stand alone circut to aid in the high voltage draw thats if it doesnt take down other home appliances with it whilst charging via a standard mains socket. again common sense should tell you its possible to charge vis a mains socket but not an ideal solution Dave

[dave1]

this is a combined figure of the overall consumption i.e. battery and engine based on driving style and driving conditions so its not cast in stone. depending on how one drives it could be less than this figure common sense should tell you this Dave.

British Gas do not need to be involved but they are part of the energy companies authorised to carry out the free home installation of course you can get any cowboy to do the job but at least you garunateed warranty with british gas incase of any power/voltage issues at home so i used them in my example again common sense should tell you this.

plug your electric car into a normal mains socket and it will work fine but you will be surprised how long it takes to charge withoiut a stand alone circut to aid in the high voltage draw thats if it doesnt take down other home appliances with it whilst charging via a standard mains socket. again common sense should tell you its possible to charge vis a mains socket but not an ideal solution Dave

1/ I know figures vary by driver etc but to try to equate electric power to mpg is a very strange thing for BMW,

or whoever made the equation to do. Can you show me the equation?

2/If you check you will see that the companies authorised by the government to carry out these grant funded installations are NOT cowboys but well known names in the industry so common sense should really tell you that and they all carry 3 years warranty.

3/I would not be surprised how long it takes to recharge via a normal mains socket since it is made fairly clear in tests etc. It should not take any appliances down whilst charging since the power drawn is kept down by the device (2.4Kw/10amp) Agreed, not ideal situation but the car manufacturers make this method very clear in their attempts to sell the cars.

You keep saying "common sense should tell you" but if you also did your research you might realise that in these examples it is not really valid. Anyway, I think we are agreed that whilst the Tesla is a big leap forward, there is still a long way to go both in technology and infastructure even though 28 new models of electric car are apparently due in the next 2 years!

[noby76]

1/ I know figures vary by driver etc but to try to equate electric power to mpg is a very strange thing for BMW,

or whoever made the equation to do. Can you show me the equation?

2/If you check you will see that the companies authorised by the government to carry out these grant funded installations are NOT cowboys but well known names in the industry so common sense should really tell you that and they all carry 3 years warranty.

3/I would not be surprised how long it takes to recharge via a normal mains socket since it is made fairly clear in tests etc. It should not take any appliances down whilst charging since the power drawn is kept down by the device. Agreed, not ideal situation but the car manufacturers make this method very clear in their attempts to sell the cars.

You keep saying "common sense should tell you" but if you also did your research you might realise that in these examples it is not really valid. Anyway, I think we are agreed that whilst the Tesla is a big leap forward, there is still a long way to go both in technology and infastructure even though 28 new models of electric car are apparently due in the next 2 years!

1. Ask BMW for this maths formula.

2.Never said the comapies were cowboys. i said you can get any cowboy to the job. more over British gas is one of the authorised companies which i used in my example. i.e i picked one of the companies out of a bunch to use as an example or would you prefer if i listed all the authorised companies?

3. we all agree it will charge by a mains socket but not ideal so not sure what your point was.

how are my examples not valid? ... which scenarios in my examples has not happend to any one of us car owners before in real life.. as you confirmed there is still a long way to go intechnology and infrastructre to make it easier, less of a hasle and cheaper to run electric cars over hybrids hence i said i was not sold on them to start with.

seriously..anyone else thinks Dave needs to get a life??

[dave1]

I didn't say your examples i said your repeated use of "common sense should tell you"

As has been seen before many times on here John, you seem to do a quick Google and then quote the parts that suit your point of view. You have stated that the 470mpg can be worked out with good maths skills but since you then refer me to BMW to get the maths formula I can only assume that your maths skills are not up to it. It must be somewhere on the internet that you can cut and paste?

I certainly don't need to get a life as I have an excellent one thank you.

Cheers Dave

[noby76]

internet saves me from going to the local library to seek for information Dave this is the 21st century keep up. trust me Dave even car techniciaons/mechanics use the internet and google stuffs these days to help them solve issues they are not familiar with they wont do it in fornt of customers but trust me they do behind closed doors its a way of poiniting them to the right direction doesnt mean its a bad thing. and i will cut and paste the formula on here if and when i do find it on goolge Dave.. who doesnt?? but best to call BMW first thing 9:00 am tomorrow morning and ask if you really want to know how they came about with this figure.

if you have an excelllent life,then act like you have one then

Cheers John